Are You Guilty of 'Breaking the Chain' with Journalists?
Starting a new email thread might seem like a small reset—but in media relationships, it can quietly unravel trust, timing, and your client’s opportunity.
I’m currently deep in production on a slew of holiday gift guides—dozens of brands, tight turnarounds, constant coordination. One publicist and I had been emailing back and forth for days, finalizing every last detail. It was going smoothly… until she suddenly started a brand-new email thread to continue the same conversation.
That single move—probably done with the best of intentions—threw everything off. Within a day, I was digging through multiple chains, trying to track what had been approved and what hadn’t.
When I pointed it out to her nicely (“it’s really hard to find things now that we have 2 chains going on”), she then started a THIRD chain (presumably in an attempt to fix the situation, but now it was even worse).
And then she started a fourth chain a few days later. No, I’m not kidding.
Details went missing, she failed to submit the materials I needed by my due date, I lost track of the status of her deliverables with 4 email chains to search for, and the gift guide went live without her client.
It sounds trivial, but it’s one of the easiest ways for a good collaboration to go sideways. Here are the four ways it could cost you coverage and what to do instead if you think a new chain is warranted:
